Perico’s Restaurant now offers outdoor dining option

May 17, 2013

Perico's Restaurant, located on the city side of the Cape Coral-North Fort Myers border, recently completed its outdoor patio addition, a project three years in the making.

"We opened in October 2010, and applied for permits to build the patio," owner Gabe Costilla said. "Unfortunately the city of Cape Coral wouldn't allow us to build it, and we had to rezone."

According to capecoral.net, Costilla's plans were denied twice before being approved on March 8, 2012, after he rezoned his site.

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Perico’s Restaurant finally has its outdoor patio addition.

"Zoning was wonderful. There were eight commissioners on the board; all voted in favor of the patio," Costilla said. "When they saw the renderings they knew how nice it was going to be."

According to its website, Perico's serves a menu full of classic American favorites along with great Tex-Mex specialties in a casual, family friendly atmosphere. Perico's made its first appearance in Cape Coral when Costilla relocated to the area in 1999.

"We love being in the Cape. It's a beautiful city," he said.

Costilla, a native of Lubbock, Texas, brought his taste for Southwestern cuisine to the area when he opened Perico's at its first location on Del Prado Boulevard. He ran the restaurant from 1999 to 2004.

Its new location, at 2401 Hancock Bridge Parkway, opened in January 2009 and Costilla served as manager for a time.

He eventually purchased the building and reopened Perico's in October 2010 as owner, and the rest is history.

"The patio has been a great addition to our restaurant. The locals love it, the snow birds love to eat outside, so the community response was great," Costilla said.

Perico's offers a variety of Mexican classics, as well as several American dishes, including a $4.50 hamburger. No selection exceeds $13.99 (unless guests wish to purchase 50 chicken wings for $32.99).

"We're trying to vary our menu every day. We want people to know that if someone in their party isn't in the mood for Mexican food they have a selection of American dishes that will keep them from going elsewhere," Costilla said.

Costilla spoke to The Breeze on Mother's Day. He made a special note that the mother of his children was the secret to his success.

"I couldn't do this without my wife of 23 years, Susan," Costilla said. "She's a first-grade school teacher. She does a little bit of everything around here."

Perico's is open Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m., with happy hour every day until 7 p.m.